New 914 owner! Already dreaming of engine swaps..., What would you guys think about a 4A-GE blacktop in a 914? Options

[betz]

A little background: I have 3 cars besides the 914: A stock '00 Boxster, a restored '86 E30 BMW with a 2.8L stroker M20, and a '06 Outback XT. All manual trans.

I found this 1972 914 1.7 on craigslist for $1600 and the main selling point to me was that most of the parts were there, it just seemed to need some basic TLC to get it running. Also, its a California car and not a total rust bucket. Also hasn't appeared to be in any major accidents. After pretty much finishing my E30 I've been itching for a new project... Ideally smog exempt.
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i.imgur.com-22593-1541542078.1.jpg)

The plan for the car is to get it running with the original type 4. The PO, who only had it for a few months, said he thinks it needs a fuel pump... turns out, the fuel pump wasn't even plugged in. So OF COURSE it's not running. He got it to start briefly with just starter fluid, so I'm thinking that's pretty much it. I'm going to bring it back to stock configuration on the D-jet, change out the oil and fuel, plug in the dang fuel pump in and I pretty much expect it to start up no problem.

From there, I will get into the restoration phase. Take it down to bare metal (I believe the car was originally black, and has total crap paint job) tackle any rust, then repaint. Then get the interior/ exterior trim all sorted.

And, if I get through alll that... I will probably want to undertake a motor swap, unless I'm just in love with the type 4. I tossed a few ideas out there, but my ideal motor would be a light, high revving motor with ITB's. Since S14's are not exactly obtainable, the 20V 4A-GE blacktop is my best idea so far. KEP makes an adapter for it, plus, it doesn't make enough power to break the stock 901 trans. I am a mechanical engineer with access to a machine shop, so fabbing some engine mounts, routing cooling system etc will most likely be pretty doable.

What do you guys think? Am I in over my head?

[Rand]

This subject has been beaten to death. Are you expecting a different answer? For me, after all these years, it's really simple. Go LS for the aluminum v8, or go flat with Porsche 6 or Subaru 4 to keep the boxer. Why would you go any other way? If you want to go Audi, we have a couple of experts here, but they have all fought technical issues and may not still be on the road as a reliable driver.

[betz]

This subject has been beaten to death. Are you expecting a different answer? For me, after all these years, it's really simple. Go LS for the aluminum v8, or go flat with Porsche 6 or Subaru 4 to keep the boxer. Why would you go any other way? If you want to go Audi, we have a couple of experts here, but they have all fought technical issues and may not still be on the road as a reliable driver.

Is it a crime to want a lightweight high revving motor for my lightweight mid engined sports car? There's really not that much out there with this concept, even though it should be a pretty natural combination.

The Subaru motor I acknowledge will be a much easier swap. It's my primary fall back option, since I don't want to drop $10k on a 100 hp 911 motor and I'd rather just sell my 914 and buy a corvette than to put an LS in my 914.

Even then, my subaru has historically been the most problematic of all my cars. And I really don't need that much power in my 914. I always feel like my outback is going to blow up when I gas it. Conversely, the favorite thing about my Boxster is how in it's element it feels (and sounds) when you're pedal to the metal. I know the K motor will be able to handle pretty much as much abuse as I'll be able to give it.